Review: Dating the Undead by Juliet Lyons

Dating the Undead

Author: Juliette Lyons

Release Date: May 2, 2017

Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca

V-date.com Book #1

ISBN:  1492645303

ISBN13: 9781492645306

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Review Copy Source: Edelweiss

It’s Bridget Jones with vampires in this fresh and funny paranormal romance from debut author Juliet Lyons

When Silver Harris kisses sexy Irish vampire Logan Byrne on New Year's Eve, she knows other humans just won't suffice. Convinced she'll never see him again, she joins the uber-popular vampire dating site, V-Date.com.

What Silver doesn't know is that the site is more dangerous than she could ever imagined, and soon she's in over her head. When Logan returns, sparks fly and attraction sizzles, but they'll have to escape some very real demons if they have any chance of lasting forever.

I enjoyed DATING THE UNDEAD while reading it, but a few months later I don't really remember too much about it.

Silver and Logan were both interesting and entertaining characters. There wasn't any real growth together or complementing—not 'oh you look lovely' but more the they really play off each other and make each other better type—of each other. As this is a paranormal romance, the connection between Silver and Logan was there from the moment they meet, but there wasn't anything that really wowed me. Don't get me wrong, they were steamy together, but I didn't feel the "I would die without the other" moments I enjoy most out of paranormal romance.

The storyline was interesting enough, but there were parts that didn't really add anything to the storyline and others that dragged a little too much. The epilogue was disappointing. I look for epilogues to smooth out the ending and provide closure and I just didn't get that from DATING THE UNDEAD. I might read more from this series if it's presented to me, but I won't go searching it out.

I gave it 3/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Interview + Giveaway: My Defender by Alanea Alder

UFI welcomes Author Alanea Alder. Thanks for Joining us!!

What can you tell my readers about yourself that they might not know from looking on your bio or reading in another interview?

    I like to collect hobbies. I like to start new projects, this mean collecting and organizing items for craft projects even if I don’t get to them right away.

What do you enjoy doing on your down time?

    Reading and watching Anime.

What is your Favorite part of writing?

    The unexpected developments that happen when I am writing. 

Do you have any certain routines you must follow as you write?

    I have to have pretzel sticks and do a three-tier drill down to map out scenes.

What are some of your Favorite books or Authors in the Urban Fantasy/ Paranormal Genres?

    Laurel K Hamilton, Patricia Briggs, LA Banks, and Shelley Laurenston

How would you pitch Bewitched and Bewildered to someone who has not heard of it before?

    If you like strong quirky women butting heads Alpha males this may be the series for you.

Can you tell us a little bit about the world that Bewitched and Bewildered is set in?

    There are four hidden paranormal pillar cities in the contemporary United States that serve as the backdrop for the books and each city embodies the positive aspects of their founding race. 

Do you have a favorite scene in My Defender?

    I love Meryn’s new shenanigans.

Which one character out of all your books was your favorite to write about? What about the hardest to write about?

    Meryn is always my favorite. Adriel because he is a closed off character who wouldn’t come out of his shell even for me.

What Other Projects can we look forward to reading from you?

    I am starting a new series in a new genre for me called Ghostly Echoes which will come out this fall.

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USA Today Best Selling Author, Alanea loves reading almost as much as she loves writing. She began writing at a very young age, some of her first scribblings are treasured in a keepsake box and written in green marker. She started when she was still in grade school and continued on through college.

She believes that love truly conquers all and that everyone no matter what, deserves a chance at that love and a place they can call home. She absolutely loves to hear from her readers so don’t hesitate to reach out to her. As always, her promise to her readers remains, “If you keep reading, I’ll keep writing!”

Find Alanea and her books

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

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My Defender
Bewitched and Bewildered #8 
Amazon Amazon UK Amazon AU Amazon CA

When a mysterious illness begins to sweep through Noctem Falls affecting the children, Eleanor Kimball is called to the city to see if she can determine what is wrong. As a pediatrician Eleanor loves children and desires many of her own, however, after several dating disasters she has not only sworn off men, but has given up her dream of a family, and the promise of a destined mate.

After discovering Grant in Noctem Falls she is faced with her own insecurities and finds it hard to believe in his love.

Grant Douglas is a man of few words and doesn’t do well surrounded by others. He is scared to death of finding a mate. He believes the harshness of his past, where he struggled to survive, didn’t cultivate a gentle heart. After a series of terrifying nightmares where his mate is at risk, Grant has decided he doesn’t want a mate at all.

When he meets Ellie, he realizes there are some things worth fighting for. Even if it means putting himself out there by becoming the Alpha he was born to be and facing the power he desperately tries to hide.

As Ellie starts to believe in Grant’s love it will take every ounce their combined strength to discover why the shifter children are suddenly falling ill before it’s too late.

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Tour Wide

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Promo: The End of Magic by Amber Benson

The End of Magic
The Witches of Echo Park #3

In the third in the “spellbinding” (Seanan McGuire) series from the author of the Calliope Reaper-Jones novels, magic has been loosed upon the world—and the consequences could destroy all of humanity, magical and non-magical alike...

Lyse MacAllister used to be like everyone else—blissfully ignorant of magic, of the dire battles being fought in shadows and secrecy. But that was before her Aunt Eleanora died, leaving her in control of the Echo Park coven; before she found herself in the middle of the witches clash with the anti-magic zealots known as the Flood; before her blood sisters turned against her... 

As the Flood begins turning humans across the globe against the witches, Lyse must find a way to regain the trust of her former magical family and once again unify them. Because the final battle between good and evil is looming—and if the witches don’t stand against it together, all of humankind could be lost...

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Amber Benson cocreated, cowrote, and directed the animated supernatural Web series Ghosts of Albion with Christopher Golden, which they followed with a series of novels, including Witchery and Accursed, and the novella Astray. Benson and Golden also coauthored the novella The Seven Whistlers. As an actress, she has appeared in dozens of roles in feature films, TV movies, and television series, including the fan-favorite role of Tara Maclay on three seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Benson wrote, produced, and directed the feature films Chance and Lovers, Liars and Lunatics. She's also the author of the Calliope Reaper-Jones novels, including The Golden Age of Death, How to be Death, and Serpent's Storm.

Find Amber and her books

Website / Goodreads / Twitter

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New Releases: 5/7-5/13

Tue. May 9th

 The Berlin Project by Gregory Benford
 Blood Kissed (Lizzie Grace #1) by Keri Arthur

 Brave New Girl by Rachel Vincent
 Deadmen Walking (Deadman's Cross Trilogy #1) by Sherrilyn Kenyon 
 Killing Gravity (The Voidwitch Saga #1) by Corey J. White
 Tangled (Dark Protectors #7.8) by Rebecca Zanetti

Happy Reading!!

Review: Snared by Jennifer Estep

Snared

Author: Jennifer Estep

Release Date: April 25, 2017

Publisher: Pocket Books

Elemental Assassin Book #16

ISBN:  1501142275

ISBN13: 9781501142277

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Review Copy Source: Edelweiss

If you don’t know Gin “the Spider” Blanco, you don’t know dangerous female heroines.

Irony 101—The Spider herself snared in someone else’s web…

Another week, another few clues trickling in about the Circle, the mysterious group that supposedly runs the city’s underworld. Gathering intel on my hidden enemies is a painstaking process, but a more immediate mystery has popped up on my radar: a missing girl.

My search for the girl begins on the mean streets of Ashland, but with all the killers and crooks in this city, I’m not holding out much hope that she’s still alive.

A series of clues leads me down an increasingly dark, dangerous path, and I realize that the missing girl is really just the first thread in this web of evil. As an assassin, I’m used to facing down the worst of the worst, but nothing prepares me for this new, terrifying enemy—one who strikes from the shadows and is determined to make me the next victim.

It is getting harder and harder for me to review the books in this series as the numbers go up.

It seems as though I have already said everything I could possibly say about the characters, but I can add that they all continue to surprise me with their depth and growth. Gin is actually the fictional character I always state I would want as a friend in real life when the question is asked.

The storyline in SNARED was just as great as it's predecessors with plenty of action, drama, unique twists and many turns. Just when I think there couldn't possibly be anywhere else for the series to go, Jennifer Estep proves me wrong and I'm extremely grateful for that because I love this series and don't want it to end.

There are so many milestones I want to see Gin hit. I won't list them all, but I so want to see marriage—and of course babies—in her future. Pipe dream? Hopefully not and hopefully not for a while as once those both happen I assume the series will end. For now, I'm looking forward to book 17—ahh 17 books!!

I gave it 4/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Week in Review: 4/30-5/6

Books Received for Review

Ravenheart by Dannika Dark
Fierce Obsessions by Suzanne Wright
The Waking Land by Callie Bates

Books I've Read

The Sin Eater by Jennifer Harlow
A Court of Wings and Run by Sarah J. Maas

Reviews Posted


Cold Reign by Faith Hunter
Avenged by Amy Tintera

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* New Releases for the week. Was there anything you were looking forward to reading?

* Monday- Guest Blog for True North by L.E. Sterling

* Wednesday- Promo + Giveaway for Falling for the Billionaire Wolf by Sasha Summers

* Thursday- Promo + Giveaway for Cold Reign by Faith Hunter

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* Did you know you can follow UFI on these other sites?

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You can also add me (as in Stacy) to your friends on these sites if you're on them.

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 * I love comments so if you see something you like (or not) please comment away and let me know.

Review: Avenged by Amy Tintera

Avenged

Author: Amy Tintera

Release Date: May 2, 2017

Publisher: HarperTeen

Ruined Book #2

ISBN:  0062396633

ISBN13: 9780062396631

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Review Copy Source: Edelweis

In the sequel to Ruined, the romance of The Selection and the epic stakes of Red Queen come together in a story of revenge, adventure, and unexpected love.

Emelina Flores has come home to Ruina. After rescuing her sister Olivia from imprisonment in rival kingdom Lera, Em and Olivia together vow to rebuild Ruina to its former glory.

But their fight has only begun. Olivia is determined to destroy everyone who acts against Ruina, but Em isn’t as sure. Ever since Em posed as Prince Casimir’s betrothed in Lera, she’s started to see another side to this war. And now that Cas has taken the throne, Em believes a truce is within reach. But Olivia suspects that Em’s romantic feelings for Cas are just coloring her judgement.

Em is determined to bring peace to her home. But when winning the war could mean betraying her family, Em faces an impossible choice between loyalty and love. Em must stay one step ahead of her enemies—and her blood—before she’s the next victim in this battle for sovereignty.

If you liked RUINED, AVENGED will leave you feeling just as excited!

Picking up where book one left off, AVENGED continues the Ruined series with action, deception, politics, love and turns that will leave you wondering why you didn't see that coming. The characters continue to grow together and as individuals and the storyline is smooth and easy to fall into. 

Cas and Em still have me loving them as a couple—not that they are always a couple. They are torn apart by their warring sides, but fate still finds ways to push them together. They don't have much romance time, but I still enjoyed their interactions and I could feel the connection between them, even when they weren't allowed to show it.

I enjoyed the addition of Aren's POV. It is easy to like him and root for him in everything he does. Olivia is beyond crazy and it shows in every decision she makes. People see it, but I don't think they fully understood how much crazy was there until the end when it was too late. There are a few other secondary characters—especially Iria and Violet—that I enjoyed getting to know more about as well.

I'm dying to know what will happen next and I really want Em to get her happily ever after at the end of it. She has sacrificed so much—and for people that don't fully appreciate it—that she deserves some good to come of everything that's happened. Book three doesn't have a name yet, but it's already on my wishlist.

I gave it 4/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.